October 4, 2011
For Immediate Release

NRWA opens 2011 H2O-XPO

LOUISVILLE, Ken. – The National Rural Water Association opened the 2011 H2O-XPO on October 4.                

After a day of open exhibit hall and educational sessions, speakers addressed over 2,000 water professionals in the grand ballroom of the Galt House Hotel. The speeches of the night focused on continued excellence in the face of modern economic problems and budget cuts.                

“Our best years are still ahead of us,” said Rob Johnson, NRWA CEO.                

A key focus for association moving forward will be building and maintaining relationships with a congress that continues to shift due to electoral turnover.                

“There was a time we could visit Washington once, then forget about it the rest of the year,” said Joe Liles, NRWA President. “We have to continue to build our relationships.”                

Liles reminded rural water that the close relationships the organization has built with government have been built through consistent contact at local, state and national levels.                

Despite the uncertainty of future funding and threats of deep cuts to government spending, the leadership of rural water remains confident in the future. Johnson compared the funding situation with the Biblical account of Egypt, which had seven years of plenty to prepare for seven years of famine.                

“We’ve had 30 years of plenty to prepare for the times ahead,” he said.                

The evening concluded with the humorous anecdotes and “positive thinking” of Dr. Karl Hurley.               

The Kentucky native shared stories about his friends and family, though he admitted they stretched the bounds of truth.             

"All of my stories are true or based on truth," he said.           

The H20-XPO is a partnership between the National Rural Water Association and the Association of Equipment Manufacturers to co-locate their national conferences bi-annually, beginning in 2009. The event offers over 80 educational sessions, 1,000 exhibits and 30 acres (120,000 m2) of equipment, including hands-on demonstrations. The first co-located event was held October 6-8, 2009 in Louisville, Ken. The partnership is designed to bring together water & wastewater utility systems, big and small, municipal and rural, operations, management and governance to create the only event of its kind. H2O-XPO is designed to meet the increasing needs of water, wastewater and municipal operations in products, services, equipment and education.

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